COVER STORY

Diwali 2021: Hyderabadi’s & their Glamorous Celebrations!

Diwali – it is that time of the year when we don our jazziest outfits and pull out our sparkly shoes to enjoy the grand celebrations with our near and dears. The festive season seems to be a time when everything else takes a backseat and spending time with your loved ones comes into focus. We decided to leverage this very sentiment and interviewed different families from the city asking them about their celebration style. Read along to know all about their unique festive tales!

Neerja Kona with her son Ansh

1. Which is your most memorable Diwali to date? It has to be the last Diwali of the year 2020. I and Ansh started putting Rangoli in front of the house….thought of doing something simple but one thing lead to another. We ended up doing these really intricate designs and had so much fun filling them with different colours and flowers. We went on to decorate our whole place with flowers and Diya’s - which me and his hand-painted. And that evening all of us got together and cooked a great meal at home, all in all, it was a day well spent with my family. I got to wish my friends and it was such a lovely day filled with great memories.

2. What’s your ootn or ootd for the day? It’s usually something simple. I prefer Chanderi or cotton sarees or kurtas. I love jumkas and it definitely is my go-to accessory to up the festive quotient for the day.

3. What is the most lovable thing about Diwali? I think the best part about our Indian culture and our festivals is that it’s one day that everyone automatically gets into a happier mood. We are all in a festive spirit and the bonds between family and friends seem so much stronger. I have always loved festival mornings. The smell of amazing food being cooked in the kitchen to the floral decorations of the puja mandir. It’s just such a happy time.

4. What are your favourite firecrackers? I am so not a firecracker person! Although I love to watch fireworks shows sometimes but have never been much into bursting crackers. I remember as a kid loving those black snake tablets that when set on fire you can see the “snake”. Ansh on the other hand loves his crackers, he loves rockets and Lakshmi bombs and ladees.

5. How is a typical day like at your house? My mother in law usually is the first one up prepping the puja mandir and getting things ready in the kitchen. We all usually are up quite early and try to pitch in as much as we can. I love getting Ansh ready and we usually video call our cousins and friends to wish them. Once the puja is done it’s just a day spent being around the living room with lots of food to go around. By the evening ideally, we would have been done decorating the house and getting ready to light the Diya’s. I prefer a cracker free Diwali but Ansh is a bit too young and he really loves his crackers. So for him, we usually bring a few crackers and the boys have their fun time. And we are onto a nice family dinner and end the day watching a movie.

6. What according to you are the best places to shop for Diwali special outfits? I love shopping online. Loom and Jaypore are my go-to sites. But in Hyderabad, I usually shop at Ritu Kumar, Fab India, Nicobar or Anonym.

7. Are Diwali celebrations this year going to be any different due to the pandemic? The pandemic has taught all of us to be more receptive to one another I feel spending time with each other has become that much more important. Like I said festival time at home is a time to bring all of us together. I am looking forward to doing the same this year with Ansh, getting some Diya’s to paint and spending time decorating the house with simple flowers and lights. And lots of food!

The Surana Family

1. Which is your most memorable Diwali to date? My most memorable Diwali was definitely the Diwali years we celebrated as kids. Diwali was such a joyous event and it was so much fun celebrating it with kids of our age group.

2. What’s your ootn or ootd for the day? The only time of the year that I put on Indian wear and the traditional jewellery comes out. This year I’ll be wearing a nude coloured mirror work Anarkali.

3. What is the most loveable thing about Diwali? On Diwali the full family comes together, there are smiles and laughter and happiness in the air, that’s the best thing about Diwali!

4. What are your favourite firecrackers? I have a real love for rockets!

5. How is a typical day like at the Surana House? A typical Diwali day is starting off with Pooja in the morning, having an elaborate lunch together, moving to our factory to do Pooja and then coming back home and lighting some diyas and some mild crackers! Our entire joint family comes together and it’s tons of fun.

6. What according to you are the best places to shop for Diwali special outfits? I love to shop at exhibitions, you get different collections and designers that you don’t find at stores.

7. Are Diwali celebrations this year going to be any different due to the pandemic? I don’t think so, apart from the fact that we don’t light up as many crackers as before, this Diwali will be the same as others.

The Singi Reddy Sisters

1. Which is your most memorable Diwali to date? Every Diwali is so important to me as we enjoy doing a lot of things together my grandma doesn’t remember the date or month when my father was born so said once it was on Diwali so we celebrate my dads birthday every Diwali.

2. What’s your Ootn/ Ootd for the day? I am very casual, comfy when it comes to clothes. My go-to style during the day is usually kurti at home and outside mostly whites.

3. What is the most loveable thing about Diwali? Decorating the house together, my mom, sister everyone is involved in making rangoli to setting up the lights.

4. What is your favourite firecracker? Rockets add colours to the sky, and I personally enjoy the feeling of looking up to a glittery sky.

5. What is a typical festive day like at the Singi Reddy house? We have Lakshmi pooja followed by feeding the orphan kids food as it’s my dad’s birthday and we end up lighting some eco fireworks.

6. What according to you are the best places to shop for Diwali outfits? I love getting ready especially ethnic. Almari, Abha, premyabymanishii, simone

7. Are Diwali celebrations this year going to be any different due to the pandemic? Diwali is a festival of lights so this year we wanted to keep the celebration simple and light others life and make a difference so we planned on supporting the orphanage kids with their academics.

5. How is a typical day like at the Sarin Gokhale house? We wake up early, get dressed, start off by putting flowers all around, Rangoli, making the Diya’s ready for the night, do a small Pooja, visit close family & friends to give Our little Hampers & Mithai. Lunch is usually a feast with a lavish Spread of Indian Food, followed by Pooja & lighting of Diya in the evening and the Laxmi Pooja. For Dinner we usually have a party at home with a few Closed ones, Some Friendly Poker, Dinner & Drinks followed by Music & Crackers.

6. What according to you are the best places to shop for Diwali special outfits? I personally order my outfits a month before just so that it’s delivered on time! We buy our Outfits from Indian Designers to Support homegrown brands & in case we need a fun Party Outfit, Zara & HM have a lovely Affordable Indian Collection this year.

7. Are Diwali celebrations this year going to be any different due to the pandemic? Diwali is the only Biggest Festival we as a family celebrate & keep the Pandemic in mind and also now being Extra Careful since we have a Baby, we ensure everyone who comes over are fully vaccinated. Apurva & I would have our Masks on when we step out and probably Skip going to too many Houses to ensure we restrict contact with too many people.

The Gokhale Family

1. Which is your most memorable Diwali to date? Diwali all these years was always about having Lavish Parties & Games however after we had our baby Kiara, the Last Diwali was special as we Stayed at home and celebrated amongst Us as a Family and had a very Close Intimate celebration with our Daughter. The Significance also being that it was Kiara’s First Diwali and watching her play around with flowers and LED candles & enjoying the lights was priceless.

2. What’s your ootn or ootd for the day? My outfits for Diwali are Always Indian. I don’t wear Indian traditional outfits all around the year but when it comes to Festivals, I Love my Anarkali’s, Lehenga’s & Draped Saree Gowns.

3. What is the most lovable thing about Diwali? What I love about Diwali are the festivities as a whole :) Right from getting the house Cleaned for Diwali, (Diwali ki Safai) and getting hampers ready for all the people we love, buying Diya’s, painting them, the flowers, the special Ghee Mithai, the Pooja, the sparkles and everything pretty is everything gets us excited to celebrate Diwali

4. What are your favourite firecrackers? We don’t burst as much as we used to back when we were kids but just as a custom we light a few Smoke-free Sparkles, Flower Pots & a few fancy crackers that go up and burst into several formations just to show Kiara how the Festival of Lights is celebrated.

The Boda Family

1. Which is your most memorable Diwali to date? Diwali’s are always very special and are memorable every year, now it is a little more memorable as my Son is in his teens and as a family, we enjoy with each other a lot. Going back to my childhood years we used to have crazy fun with all our cousins they all used to come to our house. we all used to burst crackers till late at night. Parallelly enjoy traditional South-Indian special foods organised by mom which was delicious.

2. What’s your ootn or ootd for the day? I love to wear traditional in the day like nice pattu or designer Saree and Indo-western during the night, preferable some good designer collection of the season.

3. What is the most lovable thing about Diwali? The most lovable thing is being together with Family and Friends, apart from that the festive mood, food and lights & decorations make it icing on the cake.

4. What are your favourite firecrackers? I like the Flowerpots and Rockets, they have beautiful colours and lights come out of them.

5. How is a typical day like at the Boda’s House? The typical day starts a day before with some decoration to the home and on Diwali day we get ready with new clothes and accessories (Jewellery), then we do Lakshmi Pooja in the evening. We make special Dishes and Sweets for the festival lunch and in the evening our family and a few friends meet and have a fun time with Crackers, music, food and some festive games at our entertainment area and by the poolside lawns to end the night on a happy note.

6. What according to you are the best places to shop for Diwali special outfits? Nowadays there are many places to shop from Branded shops to Designer Stores, which you can access even online. Particularly Hyderabad is having most of the designer outlets at Banjara Hills and Jubilee Hills area, which are well known for all the best stores in town. I also like shopping in Delhi where the variety and spread are much more.

7. Are Diwali celebrations this year going to be any different due to the pandemic? Definitely, due to the pandemic Diwali celebrations will be a little lowkey but the spirit of Diwali is very high, as we are sailing at the end of the Pandemic and life is coming to normal. We hope to end with this Diwali a period of uncertainty and kayos. Wish the year ahead with lots of happy days and a Health life.

The Hindocha Family

1. Which is your most memorable Diwali to date? It has to be the Diwali from my childhood, those days were so different. Everyone used to dress up completely in traditional whether men, women or kids. The Poojas, the crackers, the family Getogethers and the shopping.. everything was so much fun. I remember preparations used to begin even before Dussehra in terms of cleaning and preparing snacks and sweets. I miss all those traditional delicacies which my grandmother used to prepare for Diwali, now we’ve become so healthconscious that we can’t afford to eat those. However, these small things bring out the true essence of the festival.

2. What’s your ootn or ootd for the day? For Diwali it’s always a Saree, we have poojas back to back from Dhanteras till Diwali day. At home and at our place of work. So it’s bandhini or Banarasi sarees.

3. What is the most lovable thing about Diwali? I love how it brings friends and family together. At this age, we’ve gotten so busy and engrossed in the cycle of life that we’ve forgotten the importance of family & friends. Social Media has taken the place of these important people in our lives, but the personal touch can never be replaced. I always cherish the moments with family when there are no gadgets and everyone is having pure fun.

4. What are your favourite firecrackers? I love the Anar, it’s just beautiful. Love its colours!

5. How is a typical day like at the Hindocha house? Every year, on Diwali day the first thing we do is a Pooja at home. We make Undhiyu which is a traditional curry item made with lots of vegetables and mixed flavours. It is Followed by making calls to our distant relatives to wish and seek blessings from them. Later on, we get ready for the Pooja at our store. The day ends with bursting a few firecrackers and a Family Dinner. For us Gujaratis, the New year falls on the next day of Diwali and it is of utmost importance. We make Godpapdi on this day which is a sweet item made out of wheat flour, Jaggery and Ghee. Then we set off to meet all our relatives in town and seek their blessings. Usually, the younger ones go to the elder’s house and the entire day passes by meeting all family members. Diwali for us is not just one day, it’s spread across two months. Pre and post, owing to hectic work schedules everyone plans dinner at their residence only on weekends. So we literally have our calendars marked for every weekend. Sometimes it’s my in-laws, some times my paternal family, some times our friends so it’s a lot of fun around this time.

6. What according to you are the best places to shop for Diwali special outfits? There’s a new store recently opened by the name Ohana, it’s a great place for Fusion and Designer garments. For Sarees, Mandir is a wonderful store and for Men’s wear, it’s none other than Tejas Harish.

7. Are Diwali celebrations this year going to be any different due to the pandemic? I don’t think so, with the successful vaccination drive, there’s more confidence and less fear in people. It won’t have much effect on the Diwali Celebrations as the last year was dull, this I am sure everyone would like the celebrate their hearts out. However, I request to keep smaller gatherings just to be the safer side.

The Mohan Family

1. Which is your most memorable Diwali to date? Every Festival is unique and Diwali is one of the festivals. We are individuals who appreciate and observe Every celebration. Diwali is a festival of happiness. But last year Diwali when everyone was a strained reason for Coronavirus, we assist numerous merchants with selling their diyas. We showed numerous women how to make diyas and helped them to sell.. which was extremely fulfilling.

2. What’s your ootn or ootd for the day? Ootd, complete customary. Ghaghra of South Indian silk dropped with ikkat saree. Work of beguiling, Falaknuma Palace and Pala pitta, Nawabi Hyderabad tehjeeb. During the nighttime, we do Laxmi Pooja. So really like to be in North Indian customary clothing.

3. What is the most lovable thing about Diwali? The most adorable thing about Diwali is I see all my relatives smile on their faces, wishing one another and taking care of one another desserts.

4. What are your favourite firecrackers? Crackers I don't burn much because of contamination. Yet, yes Anar is the thing that we burn as it adds light.

5. How is a typical day like at the Mohan house? A typical day starts with the Design of the home really seven days before to invite Goddess Laxmi and Relatives. We ease up our home. We love lights. Companions start coming to meet DAY starts with LUXMI POOJA AT *MY LABELINA DE SALON* We disseminate gifts and desserts to staff. Then, at that point, to Devnaar blind school where we serve food and treats. We meet our elders and seek their blessings. During the evening we meet our neighbours to wish glad Diwali. Evening time is for Laxmi Pooja at home according to Mahuratum. Then, at that point, with our loved ones legitimate cooking with Hyderabadi flavour food and dessert followed by consuming of crackers.

6. What according to you are the best places to shop for Diwali special outfits? MY favourite is SOUN AND SHAUGAT PAUL, ELAHE, Rohit Bal, Kavita Agarwal, CN DEZINE studios and one of my dear friend RASHMI DOSHI

7. Are Diwali celebrations this year going to be any different due to the pandemic? Yes, definitely it's going to be different as Pandemic has taught us many different things. People have started realizing what they were missing and who is actually close at the time of difficulties. So I feel most of them must be celebrating with *their real ones, not reel ones.*